I can't say the Red Orchestra are counted amongst the German resisters I know the most about, but I do find Libertas Schulze-Boysen an interesting person, and was glad to discover this new novel by Ellie Midwood, an author I noticed is writing many WWII books telling stories of real people who lived through it and found themselves on the wrong side of the law the Nazis had imposed.

Artistically-inclined and charming, Libertas came from an old Prussian family (her grandfather was a prince and her mother a countess) and grew up privileged in a countryside castle, moving to glamorous Berlin before she hit 20, looking for a life that would make a difference, preferably as a creative. There, she finds work in the MGM studios, which exposes her to the censorship and extreme propaganda and anti-Semitism that Goebbels' ministry forces the press and cinema world to comply with. She feels repulsed, but doesn't see a way to rebel until she meets the man who would become her husband, Harro Schulze-Boysen, a man with a past in the files of the Gestapo due to politically incorrect journalism.

They fall madly in love, and having found they share values and opposition to the Nazis, they come up with a plan to create a resistance group that'll be known as the Red Orchestra, one of the longest-running resistance cells in Germany, that had members the likes of Arvid Harnack and his wife Mildred, the only American executed in Germany for anti-Nazi activities, and inspired other resisters that the novel doesn't give much page time to. Taking advantage of Harro's post at Göring's Luftwaffe headquarters, they both pass on state secrets to the Soviets about German war plans, and also print & distribute leaflets warning people about what horrendous things the government is doing. With Hitler in power, it isn't hard to imagine how their brave work ended.

The novel has a very slow-paced start, so you'll need to be persistent if you don't want to abandon early. Practically nothing happens in the first half, only a series of scenes from Libertas' early years in Berlin that seem to be there for showcasing the increasingly ominous turn the new Chancellor's rule is taking. Libs, as she's called by friends, is also portrayed as rather vapidly naïve at times, which isn't exactly how Frau Schulze-Boysen was in real life. And in the initial chapters following her meeting of and marriage to Harro, the focus is on a glamorised "bohemian" life that, in my opinion, fails to be as fascinating as we are told it is. Both her and her husband strike me as rather bored people with airy-fairy intellectual pretensions rather than artistic souls with unconventional panache; and the problem is that we're told more than actually shown them as they're supposed to be onpage. But the book improves on the second half, when the couple get deep into their subversive activities, which grow in number of accomplices and in reach, and the story becomes more engrossing from there on.

I noticed that the writing has improved regarding the long paragraphs made the flow difficult in the other book by this author I read, but the tendency to italicise inner dialogue improperly still stays. In this, the POV style used is Third Person Limited, so when there's inner dialogue/thoughts, the italicised lines should be written in First Person POV. Instead, the italicised inner monologue is weirdly kept in Third Person, resulting in Libertas referring to herself in the third person, as if she were a Julius Caesar wannabe. The author really needs to be more careful with how she writes and italicises inner monologue, because the styles experimented with so far haven't been done properly: in the other novel, the first person narrative didn't need italicising to indicate inner monologue, it's already there by default, and now this, which is arguably worse.

Also, the final scene has a happy tone that feels rather incongruous with what's going on. The Schulze-Boysens' is not a happy story. It's a story of bravery, of doing the right thing (even if there's a point to be made about trying to topple a murderous dictatorship by aiding another murderous dictatorship), of fighting for freedom, and of hope; but not a happy one. I don't think it fit their tragic destiny, but I do understand that it goes with the character of the Schulze-Boysens as they are portrayed in this novel.

Based on true story of Libertas and Harro Schulze-Boysen, I think this novel is intriguing! They have done similar things as what Sophie Scholl has done, hence I wished that they had met her when I was reading it (also I've been wondering whether or not they do have ever met each other). I'm aware that I don't know many names of people who worked against the regime. Although I find that the love part is too overacting, I still recommend reading this book and I'll definitely buy this book once it's released, as I'm also grateful to NetGalley for an opportunity to read it. This is the first book I've read from the author, but definitely, it won't be the last!

The Girl on the Platform is a marvelous and heartbreaking story about heroes and love based on true events. The book tells the story of a German couple that stood up to the Nazi regime. For me, this book was fascinating because it is told from the perspective of a privileged German woman, and it also depicts how the Nazi government slowly brainwashed the population. Regarding the characters and plot, they are well written and researched as always by the author. However, the plot was a little slow-paced for my taste, and the ending was bittersweet. Nevertheless, I would recommend this book to everyone who wants to know more about WWII heroes.

Thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture, I had the opportunity to read the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

"The Girl on the Platform" by Ellie Midwood
Release Date: 10.13.2021

Libby, a nineteen year old, moves to Berlin to get away from her overbearing family. She finds a job in the publicity department of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios. She is surprised to see how the Nazis are destroying the city and intimidating the Jewish people. Libby is angry and decides she cannot act like nothing is happening.

She meets Harro, who is not just handsome but a resistance fighter. They fall in love and work together to smuggle documents to share secrets through pamphlets, sharing the truth about the Nazi regime.

Libby feels as though they are being watched by the Gestapo. Libby and Harro will need to decide if their fight is worth the battle and at what cost.

Ellie Midwood is an excellent writer, and this novel did not disappoint. This is another story based on true people, and Ms. Midwood makes their truth come alive. It is a story of incredible bravery and definitely an inspirational story.


Thank you to @netgalley for the opportunity to read this novel in exchange for my honest opinion.

#bookstagram #bookstagrammer #netgalley #netgalleyreads #2021bookreleases #thegirlontheplatform #elliemidwood #historicalfiction #2021historicalfiction

Ellie Midwood’s always manages to get into the heads of her characters, fleshing them out so throughly, they come alive on the pages. I also like how she bases her stories on real people. I had never heard of the husband and wife duo depicted in The Girl on the Platform. An old adage states “bad things happen when good people do nothing.” It should be amended to include, bad things still happen when good people do something, which is the case with Libertas. The narrative is mostly in the 1930s as the Nazi regime tightened its grip on Germany. The story gave me hope for the future, that people will continue to fight tyranny and government oppression.

"But this is precisely what this is, without you- surviving, not living. And I desperately want to live, Harro. With you by my side or not at all."

Ellie Midwood is quickly becoming an instant read for me- her writing style and the way she so perfectly portrays these true stories are both beautiful and engaging, and entice me so entirely.
'The Girl on the Platform' was no exception to this, and the story of these real people were brought to life once again, in a very real and very visceral way.
However, I did not find this book to be as compelling as some of Midwood's previous novels, as I felt the pacing in some areas lacked slightly, as it felt like a mismatch of little events, that seemed to only loosely coordinate to each other.
Nevertheless, this novel is a beautiful way to honour the lives of Libertas and Harro Schulze-Boysen, and I would thoroughly recommend.
3.5

(Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture, for this eARC!)

DNF @ 25%

Ellie Midwood's "The Girl on the Platform" starts off promisingly, albeit with more than a tinge of the usual modus operandi historical fiction novels adopt. Libertas, or Libs, is a young woman just barely into adulthood who works in the Media Relations department at MGM Germany. She is a happy go lucky young thing, not particularly bothered by the Nazi bandwagon that has taken most of the country by storm. She's just happy to find herself in Berlin, that worldly de facto capital of Europe with its clubs and bars and societies, half of them anti-establishment. Very quickly, however, it becomes clear to her that all is not well in what is to transform into the heart of the Third Reich.

The very fundamental problem with telling a true story in the form that Midwood does is that a lot gets lost in translation: reading the book, Libs seems to be a generic teenager who has zero political awareness. Reality is slightly different. While this is a problem normally faced by films and television, what with the advent of trash like Mark Sullivan's "Beneath a Scarlet Sky", a lot of writers too have taken to turning real stories into novels - names and all. It feels disingenuous as a concept. Midwood stumbles when she paints Libs as being simply unaware - the actual Libs was an actual member of the Nazi Party, not just someone who wore a pin because it opened doors and made life easier.

The writing style is a letdown and evocative both - the latter because it brings to the page a sense of Berlin as it was in the early months of Nazi Germany - in a chasm between a past that was all too fleeting and a future that promised to be everlasting, and the former because it is repetitive and designed to appeal to a certain section of readers rather than serve the purpose of Midwood's story.

From the author of The Violinist of Auschwitz, comes another story from the pages of WWII. Based on a true story, The Girl on the Platform, by Ellie Midwood, takes the reader to Berlin in the 1930s and 1940s. Libertas is wanting to expand her horizons so she moves to Berlin to work in the publicity department of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studio there. Here she begins to see the shift in Germany from the country she knew to what Hitler envisions. She falls in love Harro and together they form a resistance group right under the noses of the Gestapo. Follow them as they, and their bands of rebels, try to undermine the evil that is taking over Germany.

I was allowed to read this on #NetGalley. It is scheduled for release October 13, 2021.

I really enjoyed this novel set in 1933 up to the middle of WWII. Like many novels set in these times, this story is about Resistance. However, and that is unusual as well as particularly interesting, the novel deals with resistance in Germany, with Germans against Hitler's regime! This is more than based on true people as a lot of information about these is available. The novel shows not only the courage to do what they did, but also the constant tension, fear and anxiety they lived in every single day: whom can they trust (and to what extent?); are they being followed; should they stop now? A great, captivating story of incredible people worth knowing about!

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this novel for free in exhange of a honest review.

This book was breathtaking, a truly masterpiece of historical fiction and possibly one of the best books I have read this year. It was so inspirational and so heartbreaking that at times i actually just had to stop reading and hold the book to my chest in an almost hug just to take a moment. Based on a true story this is a truly inspirational story and left me wanting to know and hug Libby and Haro, who will both stay in my heart and my mind for a long time to come

THE GIRL ON THE PLATFORM by ELLIE MIDWOOD is a WW11 novel which takes place mostly in Berlin from 1933 to 1942. It follows closely the true story of Libertas and Harro Schulze- Boyson, their romance, and their wotk, together with their fast growing circle of friends, to open people’s eyes to the truth behind Hitler and his murderous regime and save Germany from utter destruction.
It is a story of incredible bravery, but it also made me exremely sad.
I was given a free copy of the book by NetGalley from Bookouture. The opinions in this review are copletely my own.

I absolutely adored this book! I could not put it down, probably the fastest I have read a book… If you enjoy historical fiction, you will love this. The perfect book to curl up on the sofa with. An emotional read that I absolutely adored! Top marks ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Girl on the Platform by Ellie Midwood.

Phew ! This book graps you by the collar , flings you around a bit , and then let's go. I loved it !
Based on the true story of Libby Schulze -Boysen aged 19. Living in Berlin to escape her family , in 1939. The Nazis take over the city . She meets a man called Harro , who has already been beaten up by them . They work for the resistance.
It's a love story , a story of heartbreak , war torn Berlin .
There will be tears.
Brilliant.

This book is based upon the true story of Libertas Schulze-Boysen (nee Haas-Heye) and her husband Harro. The book opens with Libertas having just moved to Berlin in the 1930’s. Libertas has a job at the Berlin office of MGM and is working as a press officer, notifying the media about newly released films. She meets Leni Riefenstahl (a famous German female director) and learns about Nazi propaganda and reflects on how its affecting her MGM job. Libertas meets Harro and they discover a common connection and they decide to marry. Libertas quit both her MGM job and the Nazi Party shortly after their marriage in 1936. In 1940, Libertas re-entered the workforce, this time writing film reviews, but must follow the rules of the Nazi Propaganda ministry, which made her work difficult. While at work, she discovered a number of envelopes containing photos from Nazi front line soliders and was horrified by their contents. In collaboration with an assistant, she decided to gather evidence of Nazi war crimes, anticipating using them after the war. Libertas, Harro, and some of their like-minded friends form a resistance group and start distributing leaflets telling the truth and end up having contacts based in Russia.

This book was very well researched, in fact I didn’t know this was based upon true events (thank goodness for Author’s notes) and checked online references myself. When a story is based upon truth, when something doesn’t make sense to a reader - but is factually correct (such as why contact Russia, why not France?), the reader has to let it go. The majority of the story is about Libertas, though once Harro enters, it’s then a story focusing on the two of them, but mainly from Libertas’s side. I found this an interesting story and liked the famous 1930s movie names dropped into the story. At times the story lagged a bit, but I liked reading about a number of the more minor characters (such as her cousin and American friend). An enjoyable book on the whole.

With grateful thanks to netgalley for an early copy in return for an honest opinion. Rather an interesting book not quite what I thought it was going to be but none the less enjoyable

Based on a true story, we begin in the early 1930’s in Berlin. Hitler is now in charge and his powers and forces are ever gathering strength. His propaganda machine is beginning to spew its way into the minds of the population- the non Jewish one. Libby had moved to Berlin to escape from her very traditional family and is now working at MGM in the publicity department. After losing a friend to supposed suicide (something that at the time was common and then other forces were found to be involved) she meets Harro and there is a spark. They later learn that they have a common connection- one that the powers that be would not have approved of. As they get ever nearer to certain warfare and the propaganda machine is ever busier, they find that they could be effective against the powers that be whilst simultaneously working with them. They distribute leaflets and listen to “ illegal “ radio confirming the lies that Germany is constantly telling its citizens. A story of bravery and determination against the odds. Of a spirit of life and a zeal for the truth that others should be aware of. Wow! I finished this with a tear in my eye and a lump in my throat- it was so very moving. To know that most of this is true and that Libby, Harro, Lisl et al were real as was what they lived through and fought for. Thoughts to remember and a book to inspire and treasure. We really don’t know how lucky we are. Stunning.
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